This visual Data Story is based on findings from the 2024 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers, a national survey of American museum visitors from AAM and Wilkening Consulting. Every year, the survey partners with individual museums to research their audiences and yield insights about their behaviors and preferences, both on an institutional and national level. Interested in joining the 2025 edition on the themes of repeat visitation, social connection, and community trust and responsibility? Sign up today!
We know there are some characteristics that museum-goers share, but we also know that who visits different types of museums can vary based on life stage, demographic characteristics, and motivations. In this Data Story, we’ll break down the differences between visitors to art museums, historic sites, history museums, natural history museums, children’s museums, zoos and aquaria, public gardens, and science museums.
Skip over related stories to continue reading article(Note: We define frequent museum-goers as those who visit multiple museums each year. We define casual and sporadic museum-goers as those who visit museums once or twice a year, or every few years.)
Art Museum Visitors
Age and Life Stage
- Median age of frequent art museum visitors: 67
- Median age of casual or sporadic art museum visitors: 44
Young adults (under 40) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 9%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 24%
Parents or guardians of minor children
- Frequent museum-goers: 11%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 35%
Middle age adults (40-59) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 16%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 20%
Older adults (60 or older) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 65%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 21%
Most museum-going parents and guardians to art museums tend to have older children, indicating they are waiting until their children are at least school-age to visit.
Race and Ethnicity
Frequent art museum visitors are significantly more likely to identify as white (85%). But casual or sporadic museum-goers are much more diverse… African American or Black and Asian or Asian American households are the most likely segments to say they’ve visited art museums in the past year, followed by Hispanic or white households.
Responses by other racial and ethnic group were too small to be stable.
Visitation and Motivations
How often do they visit museums?
Art museum audiences have higher rates of repeat visitation than most other museum types.
So what motivates them to visit museums?
- Interest
- Learning
- Fun
And what inspires them to make a return visit?
- Seeing new things
- Specific interests
- Social time
Historic Site Visitors
Age and Life Stage
- Median age of frequent art museum visitors: 65
- Median age of casual or sporadic art museum visitors: 49
Young adults (under 40) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 7%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 15%
Parents or guardians of minor children
- Frequent museum-goers: 17%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 32%
Middle age adults (40-59) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 16%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 22%
Older adults (60 or older) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 61%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 31%
Most museum-going parents and guardians to historic sites tend to have older children, indicating they are waiting until their children are at least school-age to visit.
Race and Ethnicity
Frequent historic site visitors are significantly more likely to identify as white (75%). For casual or sporadic museum-goers, white households are the most likely segment to say they’ve visited a historic site in the past year, followed by Hispanic, Asian or Asian American, or African American or Black households.
Responses by other racial and ethnic group were too small to be stable.
Visitation and Motivations
How often do they visit museums?
Historic site audiences have lower rates of repeat visitation than most other museum types.
So what motivates them to visit museums?
- Interest
- Learning
- Fun
And what inspires them to make a return visit?
- Seeing new things
- Specific interests
- Social time
History Museum Visitors
Age and Life Stage
- Median age of frequent art museum visitors: 64
- Median age of casual or sporadic art museum visitors: 48
Young adults (under 40) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 9%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 17%
Parents or guardians of minor children
- Frequent museum-goers: 19%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 33%
Middle age adults (40-59) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 16%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 24%
Older adults (60 or older) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 57%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 25%
Most museum-going parents and guardians to history museums tend to have older children, indicating they are waiting until their children are at least school-age to visit.
Race and Ethnicity
Frequent history museum visitors are significantly more likely to identify as white (83%). But casual or sporadic museum-goers are much more diverse… Asian or Asian American households are the most likely segment to say they’ve visited a history museums in the past year, followed by African American or Black, Hispanic, or white households.
Responses by other racial and ethnic group were too small to be stable.
Visitation and Motivations
How often do they visit museums?
History museum audiences have lower rates of repeat visitation than most other museum types.
So what motivates them to visit museums?
- Interest
- Learning
- Fun
And what inspires them to make a return visit?
- Seeing new things
- Specific interests
- Social time
Natural History Museum Visitors
Age and Life Stage
- Median age of frequent art museum visitors: 54
- Median age of casual or sporadic art museum visitors: 48
Young adults (under 40) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 12%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 17%
Parents or guardians of minor children
- Frequent museum-goers: 31%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 33%
Middle age adults (40-59) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 14%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 24%
Older adults (60 or older) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 42%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 25%
Most museum-going parents and guardians to natural history museums tend to have older children, indicating they are waiting until their children are at least school-age to visit.
Race and Ethnicity
Frequent natural history museum visitors are significantly more likely to identify as white (81%). But casual or sporadic museum-goers are somewhat more diverse… Asian or Asian American households are the most likely segment to say they’ve visited a natural history museum in the past year, followed by white, Hispanic, or African American or Black households.
Responses by other racial and ethnic group were too small to be stable.
Visitation and Motivations
How often do they visit museums?
Natural history museum audiences have repeat visitation rates that are typical for museums overall.
So what motivates them to visit museums?
- Interest
- Learning
- Fun
And what inspires them to make a return visit?
- Seeing new things
- Specific interests
- Social time
Children’s Museum Visitors
Age and Life Stage
- Median age of frequent art museum visitors: 43
- Median age of casual or sporadic art museum visitors: 39
Young adults (under 40) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 8%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 10%
Parents or guardians of minor children
- Frequent museum-goers: 60%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 73%
Middle age adults (40-59) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 10%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 9%
Older adults (60 or older) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 23%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 8%
Museum-going parents and guardians to children’s museums tend to have younger children, indicating families with older children are choosing other activities.
Race and Ethnicity
Frequent children’s museum visitors are somewhat more likely to identify as white (76%). But casual or sporadic children’s museum-goers are much more diverse… African American or Black and Hispanic households are the most likely segments to say they’ve visited children’s museums in the past year, followed by Asian or Asian American and white households.
Responses by other racial and ethnic group were too small to be stable.
Visitation and Motivations
How often do they visit museums?
Children’s museum audiences have higher rates of repeat visitation than most other museum types.
So what motivates them to visit museums?
- Learning
- Family time
- Fun
And what inspires them to make a return visit?
- Their kids
- Seeing new things
Zoo and Aquarium Visitors
Age and Life Stage
- Median age of frequent art museum visitors: 52
- Median age of casual or sporadic art museum visitors: 45
Young adults (under 40) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 8%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 19%
Parents or guardians of minor children
- Frequent museum-goers: 40%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 38%
Middle age adults (40-59) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 13%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 20%
Older adults (60 or older) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 39%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 23%
Museum-going parents and guardians to zoos and aquaria tend to have younger children, indicating families with older children are choosing other activities.
Race and Ethnicity
Frequent zoo and aquarium visitors are significantly more likely to identify as white (77%). But casual or sporadic zoo and aquarium visitors are much more diverse… Asian or Asian American households are the most likely segment to say they’ve visited a zoo or aquarium in the past year, followed by Hispanic, white, or African American or Black households.
Responses by other racial and ethnic group were too small to be stable.
Visitation and Motivations
How often do they visit museums?
Zoo and aquarium audiences have higher rates of repeat visitation than most other museum types.
So what motivates them to visit museums?
- Family time
- Interest
- Fun
And what inspires them to make a return visit?
- Seeing new things
- Social time
Public Garden Visitors
Age and Life Stage
- Median age of frequent art museum visitors: 66
- Median age of casual or sporadic art museum visitors: 49
Young adults (under 40) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 7%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 16%
Parents or guardians of minor children
- Frequent museum-goers: 16%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 31%
Middle age adults (40-59) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 25%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 23%
Older adults (60 or older) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 64%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 30%
Museum-going parents and guardians to art museums tend to have younger children, indicating it is a nice outdoor outing for young families, but that families with older children are choosing other activities.
Race and Ethnicity
Frequent public garden visitors are significantly more likely to identify as white (89%). But casual or sporadic museum-goers are slightly more diverse… Hispanic or Latine households are the most likely segment to say they’ve visited public gardens in the past year, followed by white, Asian or Asian American, or African American or Black households.
Responses by other racial and ethnic group were too small to be stable.
Visitation and Motivations
How often do they visit museums?
Public garden audiences have higher rates of repeat visitation than most other museum types.
So what motivates them to visit museums?
- Respite
- Specific interests
And what inspires them to make a return visit?
- Seeing new things
- Social time
Science Museum Visitors
Age and Life Stage
- Median age of frequent art museum visitors: 49
- Median age of casual or sporadic art museum visitors: 46
Young adults (under 40) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 10%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 17%
Parents or guardians of minor children
- Frequent museum-goers: 42%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 36%
Middle age adults (40-59) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 13%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 22%
Older adults (60 or older) without children
- Frequent museum-goers: 35%
- Casual or sporadic museum-goers: 24%
Museum-going parents and guardians to art museums tend to have younger children, indicating families with older children are choosing other activities.
Race and Ethnicity
Frequent science center and museum visitors are significantly more likely to identify as white (79%). But casual or sporadic science center and museum-goers are much more diverse… Asian or Asian American households are the most likely segment to say they’ve visited a science center in the past year, followed by white, Hispanic, or African American or Black households.
Responses by other racial and ethnic group were too small to be stable.
Visitation and Motivations
How often do they visit museums?
Science center audiences have repeat visitation rates that are typical for museums overall.
So what motivates them to visit museums?
- Learning
- Interest
- Fun
And what inspires them to make a return visit?
- Seeing new things
- Their kids
- Social time
Annual Survey of Museum-Goers Data Stories are created by Wilkening Consulting on behalf of the American Alliance of Museums. Sources include:
- 2024 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers, n = 90,178; 202 museums participating
- 2024 Broader Population Sampling, n = 2,154
*Data stories share research about both frequent museum-goers (typically visit multiple museums each year) and the broader population (including casual, sporadic, and non-visitors to museums).
More Data Stories can be found at wilkeningconsulting.com/data-stories.
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